Thoracic myelopathy due to ossified hypertrophied ligamentum flavum

Calcification of ligamentum flavum is a rare disease that was found to occur almost exclusively in Japanese population. However the disease is now being increasingly recognized as a cause of thoracic myeloradiculopathy in Indian Population. We report a case of thoracic myelopathy at multiple levels due to ossified and hypertrophied ligamentum flavum

A Novel Study of Semiconductor Material as a Substrate Layer for Microstrip Patch Antenna

This paper describes about the solarcell antenna which is an integrated device used for trans-receiving the RF signal and generates DC voltage simultaneously. Solarcell Antenna consists of Microstrip patch antenna and Solarcells, during integration various parameters of antenna such as substrate (dielectric materials used), shape of the patch, dimensions of feed are to be obtained for desired frequency range. Different shapes of patches, dielectric materials are taken into account and compared with the results in which Microstrip Patch model suits the best for 2.4GHz frequency. We have integrated Solarcells and Microstrip patch antenna using CST Microwave studio software so that it can act as stand-alone system in remote places for various applications such as disaster alert system, moving vehicles, remote sensing, and meteorological surveillance

Analysis of High Temperature Monitoring Using Fiber Bragg Grating Sensor

Measuring the temperature in high temperature industrial application is an important factor and a challenging part where sensors need to withstand high temperature without destruction. Temperature measurement and monitoring in the industries are necessary to ensure correct and accurate operation of the equipment. In these high temperature application conventional electronic sensors like thermocouple, bimetal switches etc cannot withstand high temperature, malfunction due to overheating and also easily pick up Electromagnetic Interference (EMI). In this paper these conventional sensors are replaced by Fiber Bragg Grating (FBG) sensors which is based on the principle of measurement of reflected Bragg's wavelength and the corresponding shift in the wavelength for the temperature sensed. Advantages of FBG sensors for temperature measurement is that its light weight, small size, flexibility, non interfering, low loss, long range sensing(remote sensing), multiplexing capabilities, withstands high temperature. In this paper the simulation of 2D and 3D model is done using the Comsol software and also the experiment is performed for FBG temperature sensors to depict the shift in Bragg's wavelength that can be used in high temperature monitoring in oil wells, high temperature optical sensing in gas turbines, widely used in nuclear reactors which has elevated temperature and high levels of electromagnetic interference (EMI).

Development of a testing protocol for oil solidifier effectiveness evaluation

Chemical countermeasures for oil spill remediation have to be evaluated and approved by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency before they may be used to remove or control oil discharges. Solidifiers are chemical agents that change oil from a liquid to a solid by immobilizing the oil and bonding the liquid into a solid carpet-like mass with minimal volume increase. Currently, they are listed as Miscellaneous Oil Spill Control Agent in the National Contingency Plan and there is no protocol for evaluating their effectiveness. An investigation was conducted to test the oil removal efficiency of solidifiers using three newly developed testing protocols. The protocols were qualitatively and quantitatively evaluated to determine if they can satisfactorily differentiate effective and mediocre products while still accounting for experimental error. The repeatability of the three protocols was 15.9, 5.1, and 2.7 %. The protocol with the best performance involved measuring the amount of free oil remaining in the water after the solidified product was removed using an ultraviolet–visible spectrophotometer and it was adopted to study the effect of solidifier-to-oil mass ratio, mixing energy, salinity, and beaker size (i.e., area affected by the spill) on solidifier efficiency. Analysis of Variances were performed on the data collected and results indicated that the beaker size increased spreading, which reduced removal efficiency. Mixing speed appears to impart a ceiling effect with no additional benefit provided by the highest level over the middle level. Salinity was found to be mostly an insignificant factor on performance

Motivating Factors For Murder With Rape Of Minor Girls In India: A Study Using Systematic Content Analysis

Gender-related homicides of young women and minor girls have reached alarming proportions in India. The 2020 crime statistics reported 1,582 homicides of children, with 119 (7.5%) minor victims raped and murdered. However, no empirical studies address the motives nor offer incident-based details of the murders and rape/gang-rape of minors. The current study used systematic content analysis of news media sources published in India. The search included five primary print media—The Times of India, Hindustan Times, The Hindu, The Indian Express, and The New Indian Express, published in English and reported from 2017 to 2018. The search also included digital news sources from newswire, web based, and other online news sources. Specifically, the study (1) compared official statistics from the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB) with the systematic search results on murder with rape/gang-rape incidents to identify trends and state and regional variations, (2) analyzed the bias-motivating factors such as social, political, religious, and caste-based discrimination, (3) assessed the trend between non-bias motivating factors such as revenge/anger, sexual sadism, or opportunity with bias factors, (4) reviewed the criminal/juvenile justice systems’ response, and (5) assessed public reaction to these incidents. The results showed discrepancies and variations in reported incidents between NCRB and the systematic search data. In addition, social bias was noted as the most common bias factor, followed by political, religious, and caste biases. Among the non-bias motivating factors, opportunity was the most common factor, followed by revenge/anger and sexual sadism. Along with motivating factors, the criminal justice agencies failed to act. Instead, they blamed the victim, destroyed the evidence, or supported the accused. The public reactions also varied widely from public anger, protests, and rallies in support of the victims, mob violence against the perpetrators, or supporting the perpetrator to victim-blaming. The research provides a broader understanding of motivations for committing child rapes and murders in India. Additionally, this research might assist in discussing patriarchal views, educating youth on social justice advocacy, and organizing community initiatives to protect the victims. Finally, the outcomes would guide Indian juvenile and criminal justice reforms. Keywords: motivating factor, murder, rape/gang-rape, girls, India, content analysi

Integrated Design Of A Port For A Thermal Power Plant

Source: ICHE Conference Archive - https://mdi-de.baw.de/icheArchiv

Etiology and risk factors among young patients presenting with stroke in a tertiary care hospital in South India

Background: Stroke is one of the leading causes of disease and death throughout the world with the incidence rising steeply with age. The occurrence of stroke in young is rare but once it occurs the outcome is severe. Limited studies have been performed in the Indian population to describe the clinical presentation and etiology of young adults with stroke. The objective of present study is to assess the etiology, risk factors and clinical presentation among patients who visit a tertiary care centre with a clinical diagnosis of stroke in individuals less than 45 years of age.Methods: Consecutive patients visiting the Dept of General Medicine & Neurology, SRM Hospital aged between 15-45 years with abrupt onset of focal or global neurological deficit attributable to vascular cause and persisting for more than 24 hours were included into the study. Patients with traumatic injury and transient ischemic attack were excluded. The clinical features, laboratory and radiological investigations were obtained from the patient’s records.Results: The mean age of the study group was 36.42±6.92 years. The most common risk factor amongst study subjects was smoking (36%). Hemiplegia was more commonly seen in males (38 vs. 14 %, p= 0.26) than in females. Seizures were more commonly seen among subjects with hemorrhagic stroke and cortical venous thrombosis (p= 0.001). Among   subjects with ischemic stroke, the most common etiology was hypercoagulation. The most common arterial territory involved was Middle cerebral artery territory 84.84% with the  Left MCA (53.5%) being  more common than right MCA (46.4%).Conclusions: The clinical presentation and etiology among young patients with stroke appear to remain consistent with that reported earlier in the literature. The paucity of rare presentations of stroke in our study could be attributable to the limited sample size of our study.

Measurement of Vibration in Berthing Structure During Underwater Rock Blasting

Blasting, in particular underwater rock blasting is the most challenging and least understood source of vibration, which may cause considerable damage to the safety of the adjacent buildings and structures and including berthing structures. Though the blast-induced vibration is best controlled by specification of blasting procedures, it is very essential to measure and monitor the blast-induced vibration of the adjacent structures to access its safety. This paper discusses the measurement and monitoring of underwater blast induced vibration on the berthing structure (berth No.8) at Tuticorin in southern part of India. The vibration is recorded using three acceleration transducers mounted on the deck slab of berthing structure and monitored using a data efficiency system consisting of HBM make multi channel carrier frequency amplifier system with digital storage oscilloscope. It is observed that the peak vertical acceleration is much higher than the longitudinal and lateral peak acceleration, because of vibration of deck slab along with frequency of ground excitation. The peak particle velocity (PPV) is obtained from the time history of acceleration by simple integration. From the spectral analysis, the predominant frequency is found as 26 Hz. For this frequency the allowable PPV value is established from various standards as 25mm/sec. The measured PPV values fro all blasts (31 nos) are well below the limit of allowable PPV value, except in few blasts, which shows the berth is safe against underwater blast induced vibration. Pre and post crack survey also proves that there is no considerable damage to the berthing structure

Monitoring Lateral Deflections of a Berthing Structure During Dredging — A Case Study

For one of the major ports in India, a shallow water berth is recently constructed comprising of a diaphragm wall and pile rows to support the deck structure. The soil strata are essentially very soft clay extending to a large depth. Reclaiming land behind this structure created number of problems including mud flow. The structure was constructed after placement of fill required for reclamation. After completion of the structure, when dredging work was undertaken, it was decided to monitor the lateral movements of berths, as the dredging depth increases. For this purpose inclinometer tubes were installed in one of the diaphragm wall panels and another in one of the piles of the structure. The structure is analysed using PLAXIS finite element software and results are compare with field measurements which are in good agreements